Hello again. I haven’t been doing my Friday reflection posts as religiously so these posts are going to have to take the place of both reflection and planning. Last week was a crazy week, I left for Seattle at 4am on Wednesday and worked for two days and woke up at 4am to come back on Friday. My plane was delayed due to some weather in SFO so I barely made it home in time to go pick up David from school and then we ended up getting Nathaniel from his camp. I pretty much passed out when we got back home.

I spent the whole Friday night watching the news. It’s been terrifying to see what’s happening to my home. The news in general has just been so incredibly, indescribably traumatizing to me. In the last four days alone, there has been Nice, the coup in Turkey, and Baton Rouge. I just can’t take it anymore. I feel like I am worrying nonstop. I just hope hope hope we get a break.

Anyhow, on Saturday morning, I woke up at 5am to get ready for the ROC Race I’d signed up for over four months ago. I did this awesome 5K with 14 other moms from Nathaniel’s class. It’s something I would have never ever ever done on my own. But they encouraged me and I decided to be brave and social and I am so so glad I did! It ended up being really really fun and I am very proud of myself for doing it.

All of this meant that I spent most of today resting. I’ve shredded a lot of paperwork, cleaned up my house quite a bit more and took Nathaniel to a birthday party. But otherwise, most of my moments were spent on the couch. I’d say it was a long week but it’s nothing compared to how the next two weeks promise to be.

On the upside, I’ve been so busy and so tired that I haven’t had a chance to feel anything but discombobulated. I’ve been living it minute by minute and doing the next thing that needs to be done without worrying too much about the future.

• Weekly Intention: This week is another crazy week. Both kids start new camps this week. I have a lot of work and three coaching clients tomorrow on top of taking the kids to camp, swimming class, and music class. Tuesday is very similar but will also include packing because Tuesday night, I leave for Sydney, Australia. I will arrive in Sydney Thursday AM their time and I will be there until Wednesday AM the following week. The plan is to meet my new team and spend some time helping them get organized. It’s my first time in Sydney so I am really excited but I am also nervous of course. I will be in a place I’ve never been before, I will be meeting a lot of new people. I just hope it all goes well and I can enjoy a bit of seeing this beautiful city. I will be spending a weekend there so my intention this week is to be present and not feel guilty about being away from the kids. I want to be able to go sightseeing and feel grateful to get to have this opportunity.
• Choices I want to make:
• One: I will choose to be present in this moment and enjoy Sydney.
• Two:  I will choose to assume the best of everyone I meet and assume they also feel that way about me.
• Three: I will choose to be positive the whole time. The day I fly back from Sydney is the same day I then fly to Boston. It will be rough but I will be ok. I am lucky to get to go to all these places. And I will remember that over all the other things.
• I am looking forward to: meeting the new team in Sydney. Seeing Sydney. Seeing a few of my friends from Zurich who will also be there.
• This week’s challenges:  Well a 14.5 hour flight is pretty challenging. Meeting a brand new team will be, too. Being in a new city by myself will be a bit challenging too but I am not super worried about that part. I will also have to get organized for Boston since I come back at 7am and leave 11pm that same day so I will have to be prepared this week so I can hit the ground running when I get back next week. Changing time zones, changing seasons. Fun times.
• Top Goals:
• Work:  I would like to spend a lot of fun and quality time with my new team and with the leadership. I will work with this team once I come back so establishing a good base is really essential in my success.
• Personal: I want to exercise, make healthy choices, and stay positive this week.
• Family: I want to kiss and hug my kids and Jake a lot lot lot this week.
• I will focus on my core desires (kind, strong, true, generous, brave) by: 
• I will be kind to everyone I meet. Spread it around like light.
• I will be strong by continuing to do my 7-minute exercise daily.
• I will be generous with my time and patience. I want to be generous with myself.
• I will be true to who I am. Be myself with all these meetings this and next week
• I will be brave by going through this gracefully. I will work hard, I will enjoy my time, I will do what needs to be done.
• This week, I want to remember: I first want to repeat what I said last week because it’s so true: that I am so incredibly lucky to get to go to Seattle,  Sydney, Boston. I will get to see new places, meet new people, and do work I love. And then I will get to come home to hug a loving, amazing family. I also want to remember that life is short and things change and it’s important to make the very best of this moment right here.

Here’s to a wonderful week!

This week is the 26th week of the year. That means half of the year has passed us by and many of the intentions I’d set for the year ended up going nowhere. Well maybe not nowhere, but also not somewhere 🙂 Anyhow, as I looked up the week of the year to title the post, my first reaction was oh no, half of 2016 has already passed, i’ve missed my chance to get it right. But then, almost immediately after, I thought, we’re only at the halfway point, I have another whole half before the year’s over. I can get so much done in six months.

The way things usually work for me is that I start the year strong, do my projects and goals until around June where a few things start falling apart due to the summer schedule and then the lost momentum causes me to drop off the rest of the stuff. Around October/November, I start building up momentum again and start planning the following year out. I make plans, I get excited, I have ideas and document, plan, organize, etc. so I can start out the year strong.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. A year is a long time, even a season or a month is long. If I don’t give myself permission to reset throughout the year, season, month, that means that I am giving up on those days. Life’s too precious to do that. There are still too many days in this year to give up on all of them.

As it worked out, there are a crazy amount of things going on in my life right now. Major changes at work, chaotic schedules with summer camps, upcoming trips to possibly Seattle and definitely Boston. What I am realizing is that the chaos of life will never end (and may it not) so I will have to find my own normalcy and routine within there. I will have to choose to honor my priorities whether they be my health, my family, or my alone-time.

Six months is a tremendous amount of time. I can accomplish mountains in that time. I am not ready to give up on 2016 yet. Here’s to being more intentional.

• Weekly Intention: This week is our last week before camps start so i want to use this week to get a few of my new routines started. I am guessing i will spend a good amount of the next three weeks driving. My intention this week is to be patient with work. To remember that there is an ebb and flow and change comes with a lot of uncertainty. Things will settle and all will be ok. Have faith. In the meantime, I’d like to spend time on myself. Exercising and eating well. Enjoying the backyard during these longer days and warm evenings. I also intend to spend time doing math with the kids. One on one time with each boy.
• Choices I want to make:
• One: I will choose to exercise daily and try out a new way of eating.
• Two:  I will choose to temper my anxiety and worrying instinct at work. I will choose generosity and spaciousness.
• Three: I will choose to make some plans for July. Let’s see if I can take it one week at a time.
• I am looking forward to: One more quiet week this week.
• This week’s challenges:  I would like to use this week to plan out the next three weeks a bit, this will be challenging but I think also rewarding.
• Top Goals:
• Work: I want to mostly just be present at work. Do what needs to be done but not panic and not read into things.
• Personal: I want to exercise, eat more protein, and drink more water and see if it helps with my energy level. I’ve been very lethargic and I am hoping these will help.
• Family: I want to go back to doing daily things with each boy. I love our time together.
• I will focus on my core desires (kind, strong, true, generous, brave) by: 
• I will be kind to my work mates on all sides. This is rough and I will do my best to make it easy on everyone.
• I will be strong by rebooting my goals and kicking off a new momentum.
• I will be generous with everyone. I want to feel generous all day, every day this week.
• I will be true to my goals for myself. I will aim to be the best version of what I can be.
• I will be brave by putting my anxiety aside as things settle down. I will not react but I will wait and respond as/if needed.
• This week, I want to remember: that all will be ok. That I am really lucky. That things always have a way of working out. That I am incredibly thankful for the amazing, amazing, amazing life I have.

Here’s to a wonderful week!

• Weekly Intention:  Without officially deciding it, I somehow decided to take March off. Days passed and I didn’t feel like writing so I just gave myself permission to feel that way. But now it’s April and I’d like to try to get back into setting intentions and trying to be a bit more aware. So this week I am in Zurich. I plan to work a lot as I often do while I am here. The intention I’d like to set this week is to be present, to be patient, and to be effective. I’d like to be able to be very organized and effective but not aggressive in the usual sense. I am normally very rushed and busy when I am here, which is fine, but I’d like to also make sure to be as calm as possible and to listen more than I talk. Let’s see if I can pull it off.
• Choices I want to make:
• One: I will choose to listen.
• Two:  I will choose to take some time to rest and recover each day so I can last the week.
• Three: I will choose to be really present and organized and effective so it feels like a very productive week.
• I am looking forward to: some face to face time with all the people I work with, I love how much work I usually get done when I am here.
• This week’s challenges:  I have to straddle four different agendas this week: two summits and two teams’ worth of meetings and I want to make sure I get through my whole list. I want to do all of it and I want to sit on the plane on the way back with a strong feeling of accomplishment. It will be hard. This is also the longest I’ve been away so I want to also make sure to talk to my kids each day.
• Top Goals:
• Work: I want to meet with each engineer, make sure the projects are in good shape, feel like it was super productive to come.
• Personal: I want to listen more. Be kind to myself. Forgive myself.
• Family: I want to talk to my family as much as possible.
• I will focus on my core desires (kind, strong, true, generous, brave) by: 
• I will be kind to myself. I will forgive myself.
• I will be strong by working hard and long days.
• I will be generous with my time and do all the work I can.
• I will be true to my heart and my gut. I will listen to my soul even when it’s hard.
• I will be brave by letting go and by forgiving myself.
• This week, I want to remember: that I will get work done. I always do when I am here. It’s always a tough, long week. I had an emotional weekend but now I need to take the time to buckle down and work. Before I know it, the week will be over and I will be on my way back. And it will all have been worthwhile.

Here’s to a wonderful week!

• Weekly Intention:  This week I would like to take time for myself. I’ve been really stressed for a multitude of reasons and while I am getting a lot done, I am also not doing a lot of what I want to (or feel like I should) do partially because when I do have down time, I feel exhausted. So instead of continuing to fight this and continuing to just get more and more frustrated, I will instead spend most of my free minutes resting this week. So I can see if I can fill myself up a bit and find new energy to point toward the things I want (and need) to get done.
• Choices I want to make:
• One: I will choose to read and sleep and do art. Even if some things get dropped.
• Two:  I will choose to start the process of making peace with parts of myself that I have been unkind to for a long time.
• Three: I will choose to be present with my boys, especially in the latter part of the week when it will just be the three of us.
• I am looking forward to: another wonderful week in my magical life, trying to remember to be deeply grateful.
• This week’s challenges: Jake will be leaving town for a few days starting mid-week. He and his two brothers are taking a brothers trip and I am so happy for him but it will likely make the end of the week more challenging than usual being alone. A great reminder to be so grateful for my wonderful husband.
• Top Goals:
• Work: I’d love to finish some of the documents I started and feel a bit caught up and organized. I also would like to find a way to schedule emails.
• Personal: Rest. rest. rest. read. do art. see friends. rest.
• Family: I want to spend a lot of time with Nathaniel to work on his spelling this week.
• I will focus on my core desires (kind, strong, true, generous, brave) by: 
• I will be kind to myself this week. Help undo a recurring theme, little by little.
• I will be strong by taking time to rest even though I know I will have a lot to do.
• I will be generous with my kindness this week. I will do my best to be the kindest I can be with each interaction.
• I will be true to myself by taking the time I need to really recover.
• I will be brave by doing the self-work that’s long overdue.
• This week, I want to remember: that life is a marathon and we’re all playing the long game. It’s not about sprinting and always catching up, always rushing through, always crossing items off my list. I will get to do plenty of that for the rest of my life. So it’s most important to pace myself. To always do what matters most, first. And to make sure I take care of myself so I can be my best self for all the people I love in the world.

Here’s to a wonderful week!

• Weekly Intention:  My intention this week is to do a really good job of balancing my life and catching up to some of the bits I’ve been dropping on the floor. I plan to work half day each day and I want to make sure that I actively take the other half of the day off and spend time with my family or doing things that I find restful. So here’s to balancing work/life.
• Choices I want to make:
• One: I will choose to be very productive when I am working so I can get a lot done and feel productive so I don’t feel stressed when I am not working
• Two:  I will choose to be present with nature and my inlaws who are coming to visit and enjoy some quiet time with my husband .
• Three: I will choose to rest. I will choose to go back to healthy eating habits. I will choose to find my rhythm again.
• I am looking forward to: some down time this week. Some time with Jake. Mini-adventures with my kids.
• This week’s challenges: My inlaws will be here this week. The kids have no school. I have a few very important work meetings and I think it will be challenging to balance all of what’s happening in one week. But I can do this.
• Top Goals:
• Work: My biggest goal this week: catch up to backlog. send newsletter. “feel” organized.
• Personal: Get rest and do art and read.
• Family: Be patient. Be kind. Be kinder.
• I will focus on my core desires (kind, strong, true, generous, brave) by: 
• I will be kind by being as present and active as i can be for all of the long days in this week.
• I will be strong by making it through this long and wonderful week and making sure to take time for self-care as i need it.
• I will be generous with my inlaws. With my time. With my patience.
• I will be true to myself by speaking up when I need to and still being kind.
• I will be brave by doing what needs to be done. By not making myself a victim. By owning my choices.
• This week, I want to remember to: Stay present. I know I say this often but I love my family, I love my inlaws, I love my job, I love my husband. I love my life. Sometimes it all comes together and is a bit tougher to juggle. I want to remember that even these hectic days are rare and precious. And I really want to be present in the moments.

Here’s to a wonderful week!

• Weekly Intention:  This week I am hoping to get back into routine. I have a few commitments but I am hoping that it will be more of a ‘typical’ week than what I’ve had so far in 2016 so I am hoping I can get back into routine a bit and also get some rest.
• Choices I want to make:
• One: I will choose to get back on the healthy eating plan and move often.
• Two:  I will choose to socialize and connect with friends.
• Three: I will choose to breathe, stay calm and speak kindly to everyone (including myself.)
• I am looking forward to: seeing a few friends, a social at the kids’ school, a mostly calm week.
• This week’s challenges:  jetlag and getting back into routine.
• Top Goals:
• Work: Get organized from all the work from last week. Keep the momentum.
• Personal: Eat well. Be present. Listen more. See friends.
• Family: Be kind. Speak quietly. Work with each kid daily.
• I will focus on my core desires (kind, strong, true, generous, brave) by: 
• Moving daily and eating well again.
• Listening more and not cutting in.
• Collecting the results of the hard work and being organized.
• Spending time getting caught up on non-work life.
• This week, I want to remember to: Make the most of my face to face time. Enjoy the solitude. Make sure I add value.

Happy February!! Here’s to a wonderful week!

Living Intentionally is a year-long project for 2016. You can read more about my projects for 2016 here.